Prayer For The Chinn Family
If someone were to come and ask you, “WHAT IS PEACE”, how would you answer them? Peace is one of those things that everyone wants, but no one has a real clear answer of what it is or how you can get it and keep it. I like to look in the dictionary whenever I have a word that I need a clear understanding of. So, the Webster’s dictionary has this to say about peace: it is the “freedom from or stopping of war; freedom from public disturbance or disorder; freedom from disagreement or quarrels, harmony, concord; an undisturbed state of mind, absence of mental conflict; calm, quiet, tranquility.”
Someone once said that, “Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading.” We are not use to having peace, and the short time that it takes to reload, many may look at as peace. We look at peace as something that happens when conflict and problems are not present. We have to get rid of all those things that create anxiety in our life in order for us to have peace. I want us to see today that peace comes not by getting rid of our problems but by focussing our thoughts on what God wants us to think about.
For instance, many of you may be struggling with the loss of Virgil, but peace comes from God when we focus not on his death, but rather we look at the peace that he now has in being with God.
Someone else said, “Peace is that calm of mind that is not ruffled by adversity, overclouded by a remorseful conscience, or disturbed by fear.” Peace doesn’t come with the absence of the storm; it comes in the presence of the storm because Jesus is walking there beside us, and we’ve got our eyes on Him.
Well, let’s go ahead and read our text for today. It is going to be Philippians 4:1-9. Here in Philippians 4:1-9 it says, “1”
Too many Christians are failing to stand their ground on the spiritual battlefield of life. We want our Christianity to be soft and easy. We want our spiritual development to be quick and painless. Paul addresses this very issue with the Philippians in verse 1 which forms a bridge between his discussion in chapter 3 and his exhortations in chapter 4. Here again, Paul writes: “that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!” The Greek word for “stand firm” is a military term referring to a soldier standing his ground in battle. The Philippian church is in a spiritual battle not only for their souls, but also for the souls of mankind. And so when they face opposition they dare not back down, but must stand their ground.
Standing firm and swimming against the current is no easy task, but overcoming difficult obstacles can only make us better and stronger. William M. Batten said: “When I hear my friends say they hope their children don’t have to experience the hardships they went through -- I don’t agree. Those hardships made us what we are. You can be disadvantaged in many ways, and one way may be not having had to struggle.”
I believe that our Heavenly Father would agree with Mr. Batten. God does not allow trials to come our way because He likes to watch us suffer or struggle, but because He knows it is the only way to grow us into strong, productive Christians.
Philippians 4:5 reminds us that, “the Lord is near,” and the rest of the chapter is wrapped around that thought. Knowing that He is near brings peace when we are anxious. It gives us joy in all circumstances. The key to this final chapter can be summed up with those 4 little words, “the Lord is near.” There are 2 possible meanings to this phrase. One is that God is everywhere and that He is with each one of us all the time. It could also mean that our Lord’s return is very near. Scholars disagree as to whether original Greek text gives us a clear definition. However, either way the result is the same. Because the Lord is near, it ought to greatly impact every area of our life.
What would our life be like if we walked in the nearness of the Lord? He walks next to us, He accompanies us wherever we go, He watches us, His return is soon. It should change the way that we live our life.
In the study of chapter 4 there are 9 practical ways His nearness ought to challenge and change us. As we look at verses 1-9 today, we will be looking at 6 of these areas, and next week we will cover the others. The first point comes in verse 1. Because the Lord is near, we can STAND FIRM. Paul begins this chapter with encouragement to “stand firm.” In chapter 3:20-21 we found that our citizenship was in Heaven and that God transforms us to be like Him.
Because we have the hope of citizenship in Heaven we can stand firm. Scripture assures us that in His presence we will never be alone. Because the Lord is with us we can stand firm in the face of temptation, opposition, tragedy, doubt, fear, abandonment, and a whole lot more. Do you get the picture? With God, we can face anything!
We’ve got someone on our side comforting us when we are down, accompanying us when we are lonely, fighting with us when we face evil and encouraging us when we face opposition. So, because the Lord is near, we can stand firm.
Finally, in verse 9 Paul says, “1”
Paul says to follow these examples. If we do that, God, the God of Peace will give us the peace we need. We, as a church, must stand our ground on the spiritual battlefield of this life. We cannot afford to allow ourselves to become apathetic bystanders.
When Rosina Hernandez was in college, she once attended a rock concert at which one young man was brutally beaten by another. No one made an attempt to stop the beating. The next day she was struck dumb to learn that the youth had died as a result of the pounding. Yet neither she nor anyone else had raised a hand to help him. She could never forget the incident or her responsibility as an inactive bystander.
Some years later, Rosina saw another catastrophe. A car driving in the rain ahead of her suddenly skidded and plunged into Biscayne Bay. The car landed head down in the water with only the tail end showing. In a moment a woman appeared on the surface, shouting for help and saying her husband was stuck inside. This time Rosina waited for no one. She plunged into the water, tried unsuccessfully to open the car door, then pounded on the back window as other bystanders stood on the causeway and watched. First she screamed at them, begging for help, then cursed them, telling them there was a man dying in the car. First one man, then another, finally came to help. Together they broke the safety glass and dragged the man out. They were just in time -- a few minutes later it would have been all over.
The woman thanked Rosina for saving her husband, and Rosina was elated, riding an emotional high that lasted for weeks. She had promised herself that she would never again fail to do anything she could to save a human life. She had made good on her promise.
How long will we continue in our apathy? How long will we remain on the sidelines while the battle rages? How long will we stand by and watch as the people of our community are swept away by the current into hell? How long?
It is time for us to end our apathy. It is time for us to get involved. It is time for us as individuals and as a church to take a stand for Jesus. It is time we...
Stand firm, Overcome disagreements, Rejoice, Exhibit gentleness, Have peace in times of pressure, And transform our thinking
And next week we will look at a few more things that we can learn about the Lord being near.
In conclusion, In 1871, a great fire struck the city of Chicago, and the real estate holdings of a young man by the name of Horatio Spafford were all but destroyed. Mr. Spafford was a Christian lawyer in that city, and though much of what he owned was gone, he still maintained his faith in God. He knew that God was in control, and He knew that God still loved him. Two years later, Mr. Spafford and his wife decided to take their four young daughters to England for schooling since most of the schools in Chicago had not yet been rebuilt and were not of the quality of the schools overseas. Just before the boat was to leave, Mr. Spafford got called away on business, so he sent his wife and daughters ahead intending to join them on the next boat.
Do you have peace this morning? Do you have peace between you and other persons in this church? Do you have peace in your relationship with the Lord? It is only as you give Him complete control of every area of your life that you will have peace. What thoughts are ruling your mind this morning? Are they thoughts that promote peace between you and other people and between you and God? Or are they thoughts that create conflict because they are not based on the truth? If you need peace, the Prince of Peace is waiting here to greet you if you will come.
Well today, after a loss of a brother in Christ we are all searching for the peace as well. In II Thessalonians 3:16 it says, “3”
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